The NBA Implements Surprising New Rule Ahead Of The 2025/26 Season

For years now, players have been taking half court heaves at the end of quarters looking to land a lucky basket, but in recent years, things have changed. With shooting percentage, especially from beyond the arc becoming much more important for awards and contract negotiations, many players around the NBA have stopped doing that in order to protect their numbers.

That's become a major criticism of these players, but now, the NBA has made a surprising change that came out of nowhere. According to a recent report, Adam Silver and the league have implemented a rule change ahead of 2025/26, one that will allow players to freely go back to heaving from beyond the three-point line.

According to ESPN Insider Shams Charania, the half-court heaves at the end of a quarter will still count to a team's numbers, but will not be counted towards a players individual statistics. While this is an unexpected change, it's a welcome one for fans, as half-court shots are often some of the most exciting in the NBA, and now, this will encourage players to continue taking those.

It's unclear as of right now what constitutes a shot that won't count under these rules (likely to be under five seconds to go beyond half court), but it is the right move for Adam Silver and the NBA to make. Ultimately though, it won't have much of an effect on games, but now we won't see players trying to protect their stats, and it could result in some big, iconic shots.